Mozart's Singspiel "The Abduction from the Seraglio" will be presented at Minnesota State Mankato Sunday, May 7, as part of a worldwide 250th anniversary celebration of Mozart's birth in 1756.
The Singspiel, fully staged with costumes and suggested sets, will be at 3 p.m. in Halling Recital Hall. It is a joint production of the Opera Workshop and the University Orchestra, with added assistance from members of the Concert Choir and the Theatre & Dance Department.
A Singspiel is an 18th-century German musical comedy featuring songs and ensembles interspersed with dialogue. Although Mozart composed many Italian operas, he particularly enjoyed producing works that his German-speaking audiences would understand immediately, and which told the story in spoken dialogue rather than the more formal recitative.
The Minnesota State Mankato production will be in English, and the action will take place on one side of the Recital Hall stage, with the orchestra seated on the other side.
The story involves a fictional 15th-century Moorish ruler (the Pasha, an entirely spoken role played by James Grabowska of the Modern Language Department) whose family had been expelled from Spain into North Africa. The Pasha has purchased, at the slave market, an English lady and her handmaid as well as the manservant of the lady's aristocratic Spanish fiance.
The story begins when the young Spaniard shows up at the Pasha's estate to rescue the captives, much to the chagrin of the Pasha's rough old bodyguard, Osmin. Although the Pasha has given the English handmaid to Osmin for his harem, she proves to be more than a handful, and these two provide much of the comedy.
An unusual feature of this Singspiel is that, of the five sung roles, Osmin is the only one written for a low voice; the English women are both sopranos and the Spaniards are both tenors. Mozart has provided a masterful quartet for these four high voices at one high point in the drama.
Osmin will be portrayed by Kimm Julian (director of the Opera Workshop). The role of Constanza, the English lady, will be sung by Kristina Mathieson and Blonda, her handmaid, by Melissa Congdon. Belmonte, the Spanish gentleman, and Pedrillo, his manservant, will be sung by Ryan Perry and Beau Marchwick. Harry Dunscombe will conduct the production.
General admission is $8; $4 for students (K-12) and Minnesota State University students with a valid ID. Those who want more information may visit www.mnsu.edu/music/. Those who want additional ticket information may contact Minnesota State Mankato music faculty member Dale Haefner at (507) 389-5549.
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